Life Goes On
by Sterling Dragonfly
Summary: Justin prepares for his future. WARNING SPOILERS FOR SEASON 5


**Life Goes On**

The sound of tape being pulled from the roll ripped through the **silence** of the loft as Justin secured the last box filled with his belongings. He slowly stood, stretching his arms above his head to loosen the kinks in his back. 'It's pathetic, that five years of my life fit in such a small number of boxes and suitcases,' he thought, as he made his way into the kitchen for a bottle of water. He had spent the afternoon packing for what would be the final time he moved out of the loft. He had been living with Brian since his return from Los Angeles last year.

Things had moved quickly once he'd accepted the job from a well-known computer graphics company. Barely three weeks had passed since he'd received their first call, asking him to consider their offer. After several significant conversations with Brian, Daphne and his mother, Justin had finally reached his decision. Now, he found himself standing here, about to leave dreary Pittsburgh and head toward New York and the **bright** future that awaited him there.

Finishing his water, he tossed the empty bottle into the trashcan, then slid the front door to the loft open. He carried the boxes out onto the landing, and pushed the button, calling the elevator to their floor. Once it arrived, he pushed the boxes in, then followed.

Thirty minutes later, he locked the car he'd purchased with the money he'd earned while he was working on the movie version of Rage and walked back inside the apartment building. The car was crammed full of his stuff—he was suddenly thankful he hadn't collected more possessions over the last few years.

Entering the loft, he moved across the open space to the bedroom where he stripped off his grungy clothes and threw them into the hamper. Earlier that morning, Brian had tossed him an old pair of sweats and a ragged tee shirt, saying there was no point in Justin dirtying his own stuff. He could just wear Brian's old things while he packed, then change into a clean outfit when he was done.

Justin walked into the bathroom and turned on the shower, adjusting the knobs until the water was the correct temperature. He stepped in, moved under the pulsing stream and sighed as the moist heat helped to ease the tension from his muscles.

It had been an emotional week, starting last Saturday when Mel, Lindsay and the kids left Pittsburgh for Canada. The gang met over at Debbie and Carl's for one last family dinner, and the tears had started flowing fairly early in the evening. Even Brian, Mr. Unemotional himself, had been suspiciously glassy-eyed as he helped buckle Gus into his booster seat at the end of the night.

He had been relieved to learn that Brian, Lindsay and Melanie worked out an agreement where Gus would visit Brian at least one weekend a month and stay with him for a month over the summer. Justin wasn't sure, but he suspected the girls had made the same arrangement with Michael. He wasn't going to ask, though, as things were still tense between the three of them over the child custody suit.

The painful farewells continued throughout the week as Justin made his rounds. He had wanted to spend a little time with each member of his adopted family before moving. Although he knew he would see them again, since they all promised they would visit each other, it wouldn't be the same. He wouldn't be able to pop into the diner whenever he wanted to see the gang, or attend Debbie's weekly dinners.

He rinsed the shampoo out of his hair then turned off the water and reached for a towel. After drying off, he dressed in the clothes he had laid out earlier and slipped on his shoes. As he walked out of the bedroom, he paused for a second on the top step and looked over his shoulder. Letting his eyes scan the room, he remembered his and Brian's parting that morning.

Justin had opened his eyes to find Brian standing at the end of bed, already dressed and ready to leave for work. He sat up in bed and smiled.

Brian quirked an eyebrow as he said, "So, this is it, huh?" At Justin's nod, he chewed on his lower lip, as if he were stopping himself from saying something, then continued, "I've made coffee and there's some bagels left." He turned and walked down the steps out of the bedroom.

Throwing back the duvet, Justin climbed out of bed and followed his lover into the kitchen. He quickly prepared some breakfast for himself then joined Brian at the counter. They sat there quietly, both men lost in their own thoughts. Finally, Brian finished his coffee and stood up. "I have to go; I have a meeting at eleven that I need to prepare for."

Justin put down his half-eaten bagel and walked to the front door with Brian. They halted, looking at each other and waiting for the other to speak first. Justin began, "Brian, I wish…"

Brian gently laid a finger over Justin's lips and shook his head. "No Justin. We've already been over it all. We've both made our decisions and now it's time for our lives to move forward."

Closing his eyes, Justin whispered, "I know—but I don't have to like it." He reopened his eyes and gazed around the living room as he tried to gain control of his emotions. He knew that Brian wouldn't appreciate a dramatic scene right now. He turned back to his lover and smiled, "So, good luck on the presentation today. Do you think it's any good?"

"Of course it is, after all, I came up with the idea." Brian smirked as he opened the door. He stooped slightly to pick up his briefcase then suddenly twisted his body and caught Justin up in a tight embrace. He began kissing him passionately, all thoughts of work forgotten at that moment.

Justin gasped slightly, stunned for a second at the **violence** of the kiss, but as he tasted the mixture of mint and coffee on his lover's tongue, he moaned and returned the kiss. He slid one hand up to tangle in Brian's hair, the other arm wrapped about his waist.

After what seemed like hours, Brian pulled back with a groan. He leaned his head down until their foreheads were pressed together and said quietly, "You take care of yourself, Sunshine." Another quick kiss and a softly muttered 'later' and he was gone, taking the steps two at a time.

Shaking his head slightly to clear his thoughts, Justin let his eyes linger on the bed, then turned and walked down the steps. He crossed the room to the kitchen counter, where his messenger bag and sketchpad were lying. He reached into his pocket, took out his keys and removed the one that belonged to the loft. Laying it on the counter, he picked up his stuff and walked over to the front door. He smiled faintly as the memories flooded his mind. The **magic** of his first night here would always be with him, no matter where he was. He exited the loft one last time, sliding the door shut behind him.

Justin stepped out of the apartment building into the warm fall evening. He took a deep breath as he walked over to his car, climbed in and turned on the ignition. Pulling out onto the road, he began his trip to his new home without a backward glance.

* * *

Justin pulled up the collar of his coat around his neck, trying to stay warm as he stood in the **cold** winter wind. He quickly paid the taxi driver then turned to enter his apartment building. It had been a long day at the office for him, and he was looking forward to the evening.

He had rapidly acclimated to life in New York. During the four months he had lived there, Justin had wandered through the neighborhood streets, seeking out the hottest bars and best eateries around town. His job was exciting and fulfilling and he had made several friends there. All in all, he was happy.

He missed everyone back in Pittsburgh though, and was planning to visit over the Christmas holiday. Daphne had come up over Thanksgiving and the two best friends spent their days prowling the city, hitting most of the major tourist sights. She dragged him to a couple of Broadway musicals, and he had retaliated by insisting they take in some of the art museums. Justin teased her when he dropped her off at the airport, saying that he needed to take a vacation to recover from her visit. She just laughed, knowing her friend had enjoyed every minute—in fact, they had already made plans for her next trip.

Justin smiled and waved at his neighbor as he passed her in the foyer on his way to the elevator. Bouncing slightly on the balls of his feet, he jabbed the up button several times, anxious to get upstairs to his apartment. As soon as the doors slid open, he was inside and pushing the button for the nineteenth floor.

Pulling out his keys, Justin unlocked his front door and walked into the loft. He frowned slightly as he removed his coat, looking at the large pile of luggage partially blocking the entryway, then crossed the large living area to stand in front of the couch. "Fuck, Brian. The least you could do is to carry your shit into the bedroom where it belongs." The man had obviously made himself comfortable—he was reclining on the cushions, dressed only in jeans and reading a magazine.

Brian raised his head from his magazine and gave Justin a cool look. "Is that any way to greet your partner—a partner, I might add, that you haven't seen in over four months?"

"And whose fucking fault is that? If you hadn't been so goddamned picky about finding office space, Kinnetik's New York branch would have been up and running a month ago."

"Bitch, bitch, bitch. Is that all you can do with that smartass mouth of yours?" Brian suddenly tossed aside the magazine and reached out, jerking on Justin's arm until he was sprawled out on top of his body.

Justin smirked down at his lover and said, "You know, phone sex gets pretty fucking old after a while. I think you need to remind me what the real thing is like."

"I fully intend to, Sunshine."

Several hours later, the two men were lying on their sides facing each other as they recovered from another bout of vigorous sex. Justin moved closer to Brian, sliding his arm around his waist as he said, "I missed you, you know."

Brian nodded as he absently ran his fingers through Justin's blond hair. "I know—so did I. But we made our plans before you left, and if we hadn't followed them, the office's move here would have been utter chaos. As it was, things got fucked up enough to delay it by a month."

"So what happens now?"

"What else—we eat, sleep, fuck and work our asses off." Brian leaned over and softly kissed Justin's lips. "Now, let's get some sleep. The movers will be here in the morning with my shit from the loft and we have a hell of a lot of unpacking to do." He rolled over onto his back, pulling Justin with him.

Justin closed his eyes and laid his head on Brian's chest. As he drifted off to sleep, soothed by the steady thud of the heartbeat under his ear, he thought, 'Yes, our lives can move forward now—now that we're finally here together'.


End file.
